Fun
Fun
Independent
Independent
Practice Pages
Pages
Practice
Word Problems
by
Bob Olenych
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Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
DEDICATION
To all aspiring math wizards.
Scholastic Inc. grants teachers permission to photocopy the designated reproducible pages from this book for
classroom use. No other part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc.,
557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
Cover design by Josué Castilleja
Cover illustration by Mike Moran
Interior design by Melinda Belter
Interior illustrations by Steve Cox
ISBN 0-439-32316-9
Copyright © 2003 by Bob Olenych. All rights reserved.
Printed in the U.S.A.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
40
10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION
Summer Olympics, Paralympics,
and Winter Olympics (1-step) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Crowded Places (1-step) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
MULTIPLICATION AND DIVISION
Home Sweet Home (1-step) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Doctor Birdie (1-step) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
MONEY
Otto’s Auto Emporium
(1-step: addition and subtraction) . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
FRACTIONS AND DECIMALS
Annoyed Farmer (1-step: addition
and subtraction) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Fraction Tic-Tac-Toe (1-step: addition,
subtraction, and multiplication) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Nothing Bugs Me (1-step: addition,
subtraction, and multiplication) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Scary Monster (1-step: addition,
subtraction, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Decimal Number Search (2-step: addition,
subtraction, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
MIXED PRACTICE
Billy-Bob’s Beefy Burgers (1-step, 2-step:
addition and subtraction) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Timekeeper (1-step: addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Sick Witch (1-step: multiplication
and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Are You Puzzled? (1-step: addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division) . . . . . 31
Piggy Tales (2-step: addition, subtraction,
and multiplication) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Code-Breaking Problems (1-step: addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division) . . . . . 32
Yummy Dessert (2-step: addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Similarities (1-step: addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
AREA AND PERIMETER
Suzanne’s Redecorating Project
(1-step: area) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Hockey—Magic? (1-step: perimeter) . . . . . . . . . 16
Measuring With Metrics (1-step: area and
perimeter—metrics) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Don’t Fence Me In (review) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
WEIGHT
Bass Tournament (1-step: pounds, ounces) . . . . 19
Chain Link or Wood? (1-step: pounds,
ounces) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Weighing In (1-step: metrics) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Lions and Tigers (2-step: addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division) . . . . . 34
Cleanliness is . . . (2-step: addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division) . . . . . 35
STANDARDIZED TEST PRACTICE
Elephant Singers (addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Hungry Leopard (addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Beach Bones (addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Empty Boxes (measurement) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Cooked or Raw? (measurement) . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
TIME
What’s the Time? (1-step: addition
and subtraction) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Time’s Up (1-step: addition, subtraction,
and multiplication) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Sports Time (1-step, 2-step: addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Who Do You Call? (metrics) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
A Mother’s Advice (metrics) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
STUDENT REFERENCE PAGES
Helpful Hints for Word Problems . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Sample Word Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Table of Measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
ANSWER KEY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
WORD PROBLEMS
Introduction
WORD PROBLEMS CAN BE CHALLENGING FUN!
Word problems can be intimidating to some students; however, the right strategies and techniques
can help ensure success. I encourage my students to start by reading the entire problem to get a
feel for what’s being asked. They may find themselves ignoring information that has no bearing on
the question. They may find key words that help them identify the operation they are going to use.
Whatever strategies they use, it’s vital that all students recognize the importance of doing all of their
computations accurately. The word problems in this book help motivate students to sharpen their
addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills. They also help them to develop the strategies and confidence they need to tackle the bigger mathematics challenges presented by complex
word problems and operations with decimals, fractions, and measurement.
WHAT YOU’LL FIND IN THIS BOOK
This book offers a collection of word problems addressing a
broad range of skills and abilities. The book begins with
Table of Measures
word problems that are dedicated to specific concepts:
addition and subtraction, multiplication and division, area
and perimeter, and so on. Toward the end of the book, in the
Mixed Problems section, there are word problems that
involve a variety of concepts. The last pages of this book
have a selection of multiple choice
questions presented in the standardized test format to give students
Sample Word Problems (1-step, 2-step, multi-step)
additional practice.
Within each section there are
Helpful Hints for Word Problems
problems that involve only one step
and there are problems involving
two steps. You can match your students’ needs and target specific
skills by checking the skill description listed in the table of contents.
I’ve also included some sample
word problems (page 44) that I use
with my students prior to assigning
any word problems. These three
sample problems show how a simple problem can be reworded to
Student Reference Page
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
TIME
60 seconds = 1 minute
365 days = 1 year
60 minute = 1 hour
366 days = 1 leap year
24 hours = 1 day
12 months = 1 year
7 days = 1 week
10 years = 1 decade
52 weeks = 1 year
100 years = 1 century
1,000 years = 1 millennium
LENGTH
Standard
Metric
12 inches = 1 foot
Student Reference Pages
3 feet = 1 yard
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
10 millimeters = 1 centimeter
10 centimeters = 1 decimeter
1,760 yards = 1 mile
10 decimeters = 1 meter
5,280 feet = 1 mile
100 centimeters = 1 meter
1,000 meters = 1 kilometer
WEIGHT
In the word problems below you are presented with three problems of varying
difficulty. The first one is a one-step problem, the second is a two-step, and the third is
a multi-step problem. All three problems begin and end with the exact same sentences.
Standard
Student Reference Page
Metric
16
ounces
= 1 pound
1,000 grams = 1 kilogram
_______________________________________________________________
Date _______________
Name
1,000 kilograms = 1 metric ton
2,000 pounds = 1 ton
• Read through each of the problems and notice how the second problem becomes
slightly more difficult than the first by presenting the cost of the tattoos and the chips
separately.
• In problem one, the combined price of the tattoos and chips is given.
• Similarly the third problem becomes more challenging than the first and the second,
because the cost of each pack of tattoos is presented separately and the chips are
priced individually.
LIQUID
Standard
Metric
8 fluidWHEN
1,000 milliliters
= 1 liter THESE STEPS:
ounces =YOU
1 cupSOLVE WORD PROBLEMS,
FOLLOW
2 cups = 1 pint
1. Read the problem very carefully.
4 Understand
cups = 1 quart
what’s being asked.
ONE-STEP PROBLEM
1,000 liters = 1 kiloliter
2 (Reread
pints = 1the
quart
problem, if necessary, to get a better understanding. Some word
problems
may require only one calculation to arrive at the answer; others may
4 quarts
= 1 gallon
require more than one step.)
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
They bought tattoos and chips for $9.80.
2. Look for word clues.
Clues such as the following are telling you to . . .
How much did they have left?
Answer in one step: subtraction.
SCHOLASTIC PROFESSIONAL BOOKS
◆
TWO-STEP PROBLEM
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
45
ADD
SUBTRACT
FUN INDEPENDENT PRACTICE PAGES: WORD PROBLEMS
• sum
• total
• altogether
• in all
• difference
• how many more
• how many less
3. Decide what you must do. (Add, subtract, multiply, or divide)
They bought tattoos for $7.50 and chips for $2.30.
4. Solve the problem.
How much did they have left?
5. Look back at your answer. Does it make sense?
Answer in two steps: addition, then subtraction.
TO FIND THE AVERAGE:
◆
1. Add all the numbers in the set together.
MULTI-STEP PROBLEM
2. Divide the total by the number of items in the set.
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
3. Check to see that the average is between the least and greatest addends.
They bought 15 packs of tattoos for $0.50 each and 2 bags of chips for $1.15 each.
TO FIND THE AREA (the amount of surface covered by a shape):
How much did they have left?
1. Multiply length by width. Use the formula : A = length x width
Answer in three steps: multiplication, addition, then subtraction.
2. Express your answer in square units.
3. Ensure that all units of measurement are the same before you multiply.
44
FUN INDEPENDENT PRACTICE PAGES: WORD PROBLEMS
TO FIND THE PERIMETER (the distance around a shape):
SCHOLASTIC PROFESSIONAL BOOKS
1. Add the lengths of all the sides.
2. If two or more sides are equal in length, you can multiply instead of adding.
3. Use the formula : P = (2 x length) + (2 x width) for rectangles.
4. Ensure that all units of measurement are the same before adding or multiplying.
43
SCHOLASTIC PROFESSIONAL BOOKS
4
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
FUN INDEPENDENT PRACTICE PAGES: WORD PROBLEMS
become even more complex. I generally make a transparency of the sample word problems page
and have the students read the 1-step problem. Together we’ll discuss the problem and arrive
at a solution. I’ll have the students read through the 2-step and 3-step problems and we’ll discuss
how all of the problems are similar and how they are made increasingly difficult. My students
enjoy reading and discussing this page, but most importantly, they come away with a better understanding of how word problems can be worded either very simply or in a more complex manner.
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
Be sure to use these problems in a way that best suits the needs of your class. You may find it
helpful to assign certain puzzles as practice work to follow a lesson, as review work, or as homework. You also may want to have individual students work on different puzzles depending on the
skill areas in which each student needs practice. The beauty of these activities is that, because the
right answers solve a riddle or puzzle, almost all of the activities are self-correcting. Whether they
are solving a riddle, breaking a code, or filling in a number puzzle, students are encouraged to
check each problem so that they can finish the puzzle successfully.
CONNECTIONS TO THE MATH STANDARDS
Most of the puzzles in this book target the NCTM 2000 objectives listed under the Number and
Operations standard. These objectives include understanding ways to represent numbers, determining meanings of operations and how they relate to one another, and computing with fluency and
accuracy. This book is packed with word problems that require students to use the operations of
addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Many of the problems deal with time, area,
perimeter, and weight, and there is also practice involving the standardized test format.
I’m confident that your students, like mine, will enjoy this collection of word problems and reap
the benefits of practicing these essential skills.
Bob Olenych
5
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Addition and Subtraction (1-step)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Summer Olympics, Paralympics, and Winter Olympics
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided next to the
problem. The number and letter next to the space tells you where to write your answer in the
cross-number puzzle (5 D = 5 DOWN). Continue solving all the problems until you have
completed the puzzle.
1. The Summer Olympics at Atlanta in 1996 had 7,060 men and 3,684 women competing.
• What was the total number of competitors?
______________ = 5 A
• How many more men than women were there?
______________ = 2 D
2. The Winter Olympics at Albertville, France, in 1992 had 1,801 competitors. Four hundred
eighty-nine competitors were women.
• How many of the competitors were men?
______________ = 5 D
3. Using the information provided in problems one and two, calculate how many men
competed in the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics.
______________ = 8 A
• How many women competed in the Summer Olympics and the
Winter Olympics?
______________ = 6 D
• What’s the difference in terms of the total competitors between the Summer
Olympics and the Winter Olympics?
______________ = 1 A
4. The Summer Paralympics in Atlanta in 1996 was attended by 4,912 athletes.
• How many athletes competed in the combined Summer Olympics
(see question one) and in the Summer Paralympics?
• Using the information from the previous questions, calculate the total
number of competitors in the Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympics,
and the Summer Paralympics.
______________ = 7 A
5. Since the Summer Paralympics had 4,912 competitors and the Winter Olympics
had 1,801 competitors, how many more athletes competed in the Paralympics
than in the Winter Olympics?
______________ = 3 A
1
______________ = 4 D
2
3
4
6
5
7
8
6
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Addition and Subtraction (1-step)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Crowded Places
Solve each of the problems below. Fill in the cross-number puzzle with the answers you’ve written on the lines
next to the questions (2 D = 2 DOWN; 3 A = 3 ACROSS). Look at the numbers you’ve written in the shaded
boxes. Each number shows where the letter in that box should go in the code boxes at the bottom to
answer the riddle.
Whose head is always in the stars?
1. The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus can boast to having two of the largest circus audiences
ever. An audience of 52,385 attended the circus at the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, and a
tent audience of 16,702 was recorded in Concordia, Kansas.
• How much larger was the audience at the Superdome that the one in the tent? _______________ = 2 D
• What’s the combined total audience that saw the circus at the Superdome
and in a tent?
_______________ = 4 D
2. An estimated 48,000 people took part in a Chicken Dance in Cincinnati, Ohio.
• How many more people attended the circus at the Superdome
(see problem one) than the Chicken Dance in Cincinnati?
_______________ = 3 A
• By how much did the participants at the Chicken Dance outnumber those
that were in a tent audience in Kansas?
_______________ = 2 A
3. The Coliseum in Rome, Italy, was completed in A.D. 80 and could hold 87,000 spectators.
• How many more people could have attended an event at the Coliseum than
the circus at the Superdome (see problem one)?
_______________ = 1 A
• In order to have the same number of spectators as the Coliseum, how many
more Chicken Dance participants would be needed (see problem two)?
_______________ = 5 A
4. The Warwick Farm Racecourse in Australia had a record attendance at an Australia Day
Bar-B-Que of 44,158 people.
• If all of these people wanted to be part of the tent audience in Concordia
(see problem one), how many people would not be able to get in for
the first performance?
_______________ = 6 A
• How many more Bar-B-Que participants would be needed in order to match the
number of participants in the Chicken Dance (see problem two)?
_______________ = 1 D
1
2
3
S
N
A
M
T
R
4
5
E
6
R
O
O
AN
’S
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
7
Multiplication and Division (1-step)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Home Sweet Home
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
How do mice celebrate when they have moved
from one house to another?
1. A small aircraft cruises at an average speed of 160 miles an hour.
• What distance would be covered after 6 hours of flying?
________________ = A
2. As a member of the reading club, Kristy set a goal for herself.
In 20 days she wanted to read three books with a total
page count of 1,000 pages.
• How many pages would she need to read every day?
________________ = THEY
3. The Boy Scouts were involved in planting seedlings. There were
28 scouts and each Scout planted 237 seedlings.
• How many total seedlings were planted?
________________ = MOUSE
4. One thousand two hundred twenty-five was the total number
of rides that 35 friends took on a Ferris wheel.
• What number of rides would each friend have taken?
________________ = PART Y
5. Danielle just turned 12 years old. Her friends want to calculate
how many months have passed since she was born.
• How many months ago was Danielle born?
________________ = HAVE
6. The distance between two large cities is 538 miles. A salesman
travels that distance 14 times each month.
• How far does the salesman travel per month?
________________ = WARMING
.
50
144
960
6,636
7,532
8
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
35
Multiplication and Division (1-step)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Doctor Birdie
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided
next to the problem. Write the word from the problem above the correct answer
in the code box below. Find all the answers to decode the riddle.
What do you do if you have a sick canary?
1. Ms. Goodman drives 120 miles to and from work each day.
• How far does she travel in 25 days?
______________
= TO
______________
= FOR
______________
= THE
______________
= HURRY
______________
= TWEETMENT
2. Tire World had a special sale on summer tires for $75 a tire.
The owner of a fleet of taxis spent $900 on tires.
• How many tires did he purchase for his taxis?
3. Monica is the scorekeeper for her school’s basketball team.
In the last 12 games the team averaged 68 points per game.
• What is the total number of points the team has scored?
4. Juan achieved some great scores on his last five math tests.
His total score for the five tests was 460.
• What was Juan’s average score for each math test?
5. Billy delivers 68 newspapers each day to the houses on his street.
Altogether he has delivered 4,624 papers so far.
• How many days has Billy delivered papers?
6. A large transport truck travels 397 miles every day making grocery
deliveries to a supermarket chain.
• How far would the truck travel in 3 weeks?
______________
92
3,000
816
8,337
12
68
=
VET
.
9
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Money (1-step: addition and subtraction)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Otto’s Auto Emporium
Solve each of the problems using the information
provided in the chart. Locate your answer in the
number search below. (Answers run horizontally
and vertically.)
Platinum
Bolt
1989
$3,998
1994
$4,888
1998
$5,988
Golden
Glider
1988
$3,588
1993
$4,798
1999
$6,588
Silver
Rocket
1987
$2,998
1991
$4,288
1996
$5,488
1. If Otto has a very successful week and
sells all of his used cars that were built in
an even-numbered year, how much
would he make?
____________
2. What would Otto’s total earnings be
from the sale of all his cars?
____________
3. What’s the difference in price between the most
expensive car and the least expensive
car that Otto has on sale?
____________
4. How much money would Otto make from
the sale of the three Platinum Bolts? ____________
• How much would he earn from the
sale of the three Silver Rockets?
____________
• How much would be made from the
sale of the Golden Gliders?
____________
5. From the sum of the two most expensive
cars, $12,576, subtract the least
expensive car.
____________
8
1
4
9
7
4
6
4
9
1
7
0
6
3
9
1
2
7
7
4
1
9
9
5
2
8
1
5
0
8
4
8
5
9
1
3
9
7
4
7
2
8
7
0
4
2
6
2
2
4
5
0
8
5
9
2
6
0
2
6
6. A couple, José and Maria, had saved $2,490
toward the purchase of a used car at Otto’s.
They hoped to purchase the 1989 Platinum
Bolt, the 1988 Golden Glider, or the 1987
Silver Rocket.
• How much more money would they
need if they were to purchase
the Platinum Bolt?
____________
• If José and Maria decided to buy
the Golden Glider, how much more
money would they need? ____________
• How much more money would José
and Maria need if their choice
was the Silver Rocket?
____________
7. Three brothers received an inheritance of
$40,000 and decided to purchase cars for
themselves at Otto’s. One brother wanted to
buy the mid-priced Platinum Bolt, the second wanted the mid-priced Golden Glider,
and the third wanted the mid-priced Silver
Rocket.
• What is the total price of the three cars
that the brothers wanted
to purchase?
____________
• After buying the three cars, how much
of their inheritance would
be left over?
____________
10
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Money (1-step, 2-step: addition and subtraction)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Billy-Bob’s Beefy Burgers
Using the information provided in the chart, solve the following problems and
then find your answers under the code lines below. To solve the riddle, write
the word from each problem on the code line with the matching answer.
1. Jamal and Ahmed went to Billy-Bob’s for lunch.
Jamal had $20 and Ahmed had $13.50. For lunch
Ahmed ordered a medium order of Chicken Snacks,
medium fries, and a large soft drink. Jamal had a
Cheesy Burger, large fries, and a shake.
• How much did Jamal spend for
his lunch?
______ = AND
• After paying for his lunch, how much
money did Ahmed have left?
______ = THE
• If Jamal offered to pay for both his and
Ahmed’s lunch, how much would
it cost?
______ = SHE
2. To celebrate their soccer victory, three friends went
to Billy-Bob’s. They all had Beefy Burgers, small fries,
and small soft drinks.
• What did the Beefy Burgers cost? ______ = HER
• How much were the small fries and
small drinks?
______ = SHE
• After giving the cashier $20, how
much change did they get?
______ = TO
Beefy Burger
$2.49
Cheesy Burger
$2.79
Chicken Snacks
small $2.29
medium $2.59
large $2.89
Fries
small $1.49
medium $1.99
large $2.49
Soft Drinks
small $0.89
medium $1.09
large $1.29
Shakes
$1.29
Ice Cream
$0.99
4. Just before the three girls left Billy-Bob’s, Sheri
offered to buy each of them an ice cream cone.
• How much change did she receive after
paying for the three ice cream
cones with $5.00?
______ = WANTED
5. The Robinson family arrived at Billy-Bob’s just
before 5:00 P.M. The five-year-old twins shared a
medium order of Chicken Snacks, small fries, and
one small drink. Mrs. Robinson ordered a Beefy
Burger and a medium soft drink. Mr. Robinson had
a Cheesy Burger, large fries, and a large drink.
• How much were the combined
orders of Mr. and
3. Two days after her birthday, Jaclyn took two
Mrs. Robinson?
______ = FRIENDS
friends, Sheri and Mia, to Billy-Bob’s for lunch. Each
• How much did Mrs. Robinson
girl ordered a Beefy Burger, Jaclyn had small fries,
pay for her family’s meal?
______ = SHOW
Sheri had medium fries, and Mia had large fries.
Two girls had medium drinks and the other had a
6. Five friends went to Billy-Bob’s after school. It
shake.
was a hot day, so they wanted something cold
• Jaclyn paid for all three meals.
and refreshing. Three girls ordered soft drinks in
How much did it cost her?
______ = FAMILY
three different sizes and the two boys ordered a
shake and an ice cream.
• If Jaclyn used $20 of her birthday money to pay
for the meals, how much change
• What would these five purchases
would she get?
______ = CAUGHT
cost?
______ = FISH
Why did the lady at the fish market ask to have a fish thrown at her?
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
$12.44
$2.03
$5.39
$15.12
$7.47
_______________ _______________ _______________ ______________________________
$16.91
$7.63
$5.55
$7.14
$10.15
$6.57
.
$3.09
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
11
Money (1-step: multiplication and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Sick Witch
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
How do we know the little witch was feeling
much better?
1. At the end of August, Mrs. Kim purchased school outfits for her daughters.
She spent $319.71 on her three daughters.
• What is the average amount that she spent on each daughter?
___________ = FOR
2. While shopping at the mall Mr. Gibson paid $5.40 for three dozen
(or 36) cookies.
• What is the cost of a single cookie?
___________ = OUTSIDE
3. Julian has a part-time job mowing lawns in his neighborhood.
He mows one lawn each afternoon, except Sunday, and earns $4.50 per lawn.
• How much does Julian earn each week?
___________ = A
4. Mrs. Wilson’s class baked, iced, and sold 480 cupcakes to the students at their school.
• How much did the class make from their sale if the cupcakes sold
for $0.50 each?
___________ = SHE
5. Keon has been delivering papers for a full year. Each month for a year, Keon deposited
$7.50 into his bank account. He has exactly enough money to buy a scooter.
• What is the price of the scooter?
___________ = SPELL
6. The Millers were having a corn roast to celebrate their son’s Little League
victory. The farmer’s market was selling corn for $4.00 per dozen.
• How much did they pay for 9 dozen ears of corn?
___________ = WENT
.
$240.00
$36.00
$0.15
$106.57
$27.00
12
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
$90.00
Money (2-step: addition, subtraction, and multiplication)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Piggy Tales
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below. To solve
the riddle, write the 3-letter word fragment in the code box with the matching answer.
Why do piglets eat nonstop?
1. Meredith purchased lunch at the school cafeteria. She bought a bowl of mushroom
soup for $0.95, two sandwiches for $1.25 each, and a juice box for $0.80.
• How much change would she get from $5.00?
___________
2. Dana bought three CDs at the mall. Each CD was $9.79. She paid for her purchases
with two twenty-dollar bills.
• What was the cost of the 3 CDs?
___________
• After paying for her purchases, how much change did she get?
___________
3. J.J. received $200 from family members for his birthday. He used this money to purchase
a bike that cost $160. He also bought a horn for $8.68 and a bicycle
basket for $19.48.
• How much did J.J.’s three purchases cost?
___________
• How much change did he receive after giving the cashier his $200?
___________
4. Melissa treated her five young cousins to a movie. She bought 5 children’s tickets
for $3.95 each and one adult ticket for $6.95. Melissa paid for the tickets by
giving the cashier a $20 and a $10 bill.
• How much were the children’s tickets?
___________
• What did it cost for all the tickets?
___________
• How much change did Melissa receive?
___________
5. Timberview School spent $497.86 on recorders and other music supplies. They also
spent $731.69 on sports equipment.
• How much did the school spend in total?
___________
• How much less was spent for music items than for sports equipment?
___________
= HEM
= OMA
= OFT
= VES
= KEH
= THE
= Y WA
= NT T
= SEL
= OGS
Hint:
Write only one letter per space.
The diagonal slash separates the
words.
___ ___ ___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ ___ / ___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ ___ / ___
$19.75
$26.70
$3.30
___ ___ ___ / ___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ ___
$233.83
$10.63
$0.75
$29.37
___ ___ ___
$1,229.55
$11.84
___ ___ ___
.
$188.16
13
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Money (2-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Yummy Dessert
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes
below. To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in
the code box with the matching answer.
1. Jamal bought 65 stamps for 32 cents each. He also bought 10 stamps
for 65 cents each.
• How much did Jamal spend on stamps?
___________ = BE
2. Four friends went out to dinner. They shared the bill of $99.24 equally
among them all.
• What amount did each person pay?
___________ = HAS
• If they each contributed $25.00, what would their change be?
___________ = TO
3. John was saving money for his college tuition. He had $1,090.85 in
the bank. He deposited $210.00, but a week later he took out $75.00
to buy a surfboard.
• How much does John now have in the bank?
___________ = CHOCOLATE
4. A furniture store had a special on sofas and coffee tables. It sold
15 sofas at $599.00 each and earned a total of $3,015.00 from
the sale of 28 coffee tables.
• How much did the store make during its sale?
___________ = IT
5. A farmer’s fruit stand sold 84 baskets of cherries for $3.49 per basket.
The sale of peaches raised $65.
• How much money did the fruit stand bring in from the cherries
and peaches?
___________ = MOUSSE
What’s a French cat’s favorite dessert?
.
$12,000
$24.81
$0.76
$27.30
$1,225.85
14
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
$358.16
Area and Perimeter (1-step: area)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Suzanne’s Redecorating Project
4 yd
Wall 3
3 yd
Wall 4
1 yd
2 yd
3 yd
3 yd
3 yd
Wall 2
3 yd
4 yd
Wall 1
3 yd
Solve the following problems and find your answer on
the code lines below. To solve the riddle, write the
word from each problem on the code line with
the matching answer.
1 yd
Ceiling
4 yd
1. Wall 1 is 4 yards long and 3 yards tall.
• How many square yards of wallpaper are required to cover this wall?
2. Wall 3 is also going to be wallpapered.
• How much wallpaper will be required to do this wall?
3. What is the total amount of wallpaper needed to do Wall 1 and Wall 3?
4. Suzanne wants Wall 2 to be painted.
• How many square yards of wall will require paint?
5. Wall 4 will also be painted.
• How many square yards of wall need paint?
Suzanne and her father went to the store with all
her measurements and they saw this sign:
3 yd
Suzanne and her father plan to paint, wallpaper, and
recarpet her bedroom. The shapes at the right represent
the four walls, ceiling, and the floor of her bedroom.
3 yd
1 yd
Floor
4 yd
___________ = GO
___________ = THEIR
___________ = OF
___________ = THROUGH
___________ = THE
PAT’S PERFECT COVERINGS
paints - wallpapers - carpet
1 quart of paint: $7.00 (covers 12 sq yd)
wallpaper: $1.99 per sq yd
carpeting: $5.99 per sq yd
6. Suzanne wants to paint the ceiling and
needs to determine its size before
she purchases paint.
• How many quarts of ceiling paint will be required?
7. How much would it cost to paint the ceiling of her bedroom?
8. What would it cost to wallpaper Wall 1 and Wall 3?
9. Suzanne wants to buy enough carpet to cover her bedroom floor.
• What would the carpet cost?
___________ = WIND
___________ = RIGHT
___________ = BONES
___________ = GUSTS
Why do skeletons hate cold windy days?
____________
____________
____________
____________
____________
8 sq yd
$71.88
22 sq yd
1 qt
12 sq yd
____________
____________
____________
____________
$7.00
9 sq yd
10 sq yd
$43.78
.
15
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Area and Perimeter (1-step: perimeter)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Hockey—Magic?
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box
with the matching answer.
What do hockey players and magicians
have in common?
1. A farmer has a rectangular field that is 400 yards long and 300 yards wide.
• What is the perimeter of this field?
___________ = DO
2. An artist wants to make a frame for a square-shaped painting with
one side that is 24 inches.
• What is the perimeter of the picture frame?
___________ = THEY
3. A rectangular playground situated next to the school is 450 yards
long and 99 yards wide.
• Find the perimeter of the playground.
___________ = CAN
4. The training route followed by an avid group of runners resembled an
odd-shaped quadrilateral. The lengths of the four legs of the route
were: 8 miles, 3 miles, 5 miles, and 10 miles.
• What was the perimeter of this odd-shaped route?
___________ = TRICKS
5. Mrs. Hundai enclosed her entire vegetable garden with a two-foot-high
fence to keep the rabbits out. The two lengths equaled 50 feet
and the two widths were 30 feet.
• What was the perimeter of the fence around her vegetable garden?
___________ = BOTH
6. Find the perimeter of a pentagon if each side is 30 yards.
___________ = HAT
.
96 inches
80 feet
1,098 yd
1,400 yd
150 yd
26 miles
16
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Area and Perimeter (1-step: area and perimeter—metrics)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Measuring With Metrics
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the letter from each problem in the code box
with the matching answer.
Why does a baker call money “bread”?
1. Mr. and Mrs. Jones plan to replace the carpet in their rectangular-shaped
family room that measures 4.5 meters by 5.5 meters.
• How many square meters of carpet do they need to buy?
______________ = S
2. The four walls of an odd-shaped room measure as follows: 4.5 meters,
3.75 meters, 6.5 meters, and 3.75 meters.
• What is the perimeter of this room?
______________ = N
3. The custodian at a recreation center waxed the gym floor that measures
35 meters long and 27 meters wide.
• What is the area of floor space that was waxed?
______________ = E
4. Peter made a square wooden frame with a glass window for a picture that
he drew in art class. Each side was 8 centimeters long.
• What is the perimeter of the picture frame?
______________ = A
5. Melissa’s art assignment was to draw a picture having an area of
60 square centimeters.
• If one side is 12 centimeters long, how long would the other side be?
______________ = K
6. Mr. Washington drew up plans for the four-sided sandbox that he wanted
to build for his twin daughters. The total length was 1.7 meters and
the total width was .97 meters.
• What was the perimeter of the sandbox?
______________ = D
Because she
it!
5 cm
18.5 m
945 sq m
32 cm
2.67 m
24.75 sq m
17
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Area and Perimeter (review)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Don’t Fence Me In
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code
boxes below. To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the matching answer.
Why did the basketball player hold his
sneaker up to his ear?
1. Mr. and Mrs. Jansen want to replace the carpeting in their family room.
The floor is 19 feet long and 12 feet wide.
• What is the area of the floor?
___________ = A
2. The owner of five champion dogs wants to put up a large rectangular
fence to enclose an area where his dogs can run.
• How much fencing is needed if the sides are 88 feet long and 12 feet wide?
___________ = OF
3. The floor at the community center is 39 feet long and 27 feet wide.
• How many square yards of floor surface are in this room?
___________ = HE’S
4. A homeowner replaced a large window that measured 6 feet by 4 feet.
• How many square feet are in this window?
___________ = MUSIC
5. Mandy bought a poster of her favorite musical group. The poster was
42 inches long and 21 inches wide. Her father planned to make
a picture frame for the poster.
• How many inches of wood did her dad need to buy?
___________ = FAN
6. William wants to cover the entire top of an old coffee table with pennies.
The coffee table is 36 inches long and 30 inches wide.
• What is the size of the surface that will be covered with pennies?
___________ = SOLE
.
117 sq yd
228 sq ft
126 inches
200 feet
1080 sq in
24 sq ft
18
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Weight (1-step: pounds, ounces)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Bass Tournament
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code
boxes below. To solve the riddle, write the word from each
problem in the code box with the matching answer.
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
8 lb 3 oz
7 lb 9 oz
8 lb 3 oz
6 lb 5 oz
7 lb 2 oz
7 lb 8 oz
5 lb 7 oz
5 lb 8 oz
7 lb 7 oz
What did the largemouth bass say to the
smallmouth bass when it got hooked?
The charts above show the best catches for each day of a three-day fishing tournament. Use the information
in these charts when solving the problems.
1. While fishing from his father’s bass boat, Christopher caught a smallmouth bass on his first cast.
They took the fish in for a weigh-in and were told that his fish weighed 7 pounds 5 ounces.
• How much more must his fish have weighed in order to catch up to the
first place fish on day 2?
___________ = KEEP
2. Since Christopher caught his bass on the last day of the tournament, his fish
did not qualify as one of the top three fish. His fish would have qualified
on day 1 or even on day 2.
• How much heavier was Christopher’s fish than the second-place fish
on day 1?
___________ = SHUT
• How much heavier was his fish than the third-place finisher on day 2?
___________ = WHAT
3. On the final day of the tournament, Amanda caught four smallmouth bass
weighing 7 pounds 3 ounces, 7 pounds, 6 pounds 13 ounces, and 5 pounds.
• What was the total weight of her three heaviest fish?
___________ = YOU
4. Compare the total weight of Amanda’s three heaviest fish with the top three
fish caught on day 1.
• How much did the top three fish caught on day 1 weigh?
___________ = DON’T
• How much heavier were Amanda’s heaviest three fish than the top three
caught on day 1?
___________ = THAT’S
5. What was the total weight of the top three fish caught on day 2?
___________ = MOUTH
• What was the total weight of the top three fish caught on day 3?
___________ = WHEN
• What was the total weight of all the top three fish caught on day 1,
day 2, and day 3?
___________ = YOUR
6. What’s the difference between the lightest fish caught on day 3 and the
lightest fish caught on day 2?
___________ = HAPPENS
1 lb 1 oz
1 lb 13 oz
1 lb 15 oz
23 lb 2 oz
4 oz
63 lb 4 oz
20 lb 3 oz
1 lb
21 lb
19 lb 15 oz
.
19
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Weight (1-step: pounds, ounces)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Chain Link or Wood?
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
What time is it when an elephant leans
against your fence?
1. Danny pulls his puppy around in a shiny red wagon. Together, the wagon
and puppy weigh 12 ⁵⁄₈ pounds. The puppy only weighs 3 ¹⁄₂ pounds.
• What is the weight of the wagon?
___________ = TO
2. Raj can carry 3 bricks weighing 2 ¹⁄₄ pounds each. His older brother
can carry 5 bricks.
• What is the total weight that Raj can carry?
___________ = ONE
3. Mary-Jane drinks 8 ounces of milk three times a day.
• How many ounces of milk does she drink in one week?
___________ = A
4. James weighs 87 ³⁄₄ pounds, and Michael weighs 83 ¹⁄₄ pounds.
• How much more than Michael does James weigh?
___________ = TIME
5. Mrs. Elly bought two full-grown rabbits for her daughter. One rabbit
weighs 5 ³⁄₄ pounds and the other weighs 6 ¹⁄₂ pounds.
• What do the two rabbits weigh altogether?
___________ = NEW
6. Mr. Jones bought ¹⁄₄ pound of saltwater taffy.
• How many ounces did he buy?
___________ = BUILD
.
4 ¹⁄₂ lb
9 ¹⁄₈ lb
4 oz
168 oz
12 ¹⁄₄ lb
20
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
6 ³⁄₄ lb
Weight (1-step: metrics)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Weighing In
Solve each of the problems below. Fill in the cross-number puzzle with the answers
you’ve written on the lines next to the questions (5 D = 5 DOWN). Look at the numbers you’ve
written in the shaded boxes. Each number shows where the letter in that box should go in
the code box at the bottom to answer the riddle.
Of all the barnyard animals, which one is
the most cowardly?
1. While shopping for a large family reunion, Mrs. Thompson chose three
turkeys with a mass of 10.74, 11.48, and 9.5 kilograms.
• What was the combined mass of the three turkeys?
2. A wrestler’s mass is 137.25 kilograms. After a three-week vacation
his mass increased to 149.19 kilograms.
• By how many kilograms did his mass increase?
3. The average mass of 15 people on a large elevator is 72 kilograms.
• What is the total mass of that group?
4. Jamal’s mass is 60.5 kilograms, his brother’s is 80.35 kilograms, and their
dad’s mass is 110.47 kilograms.
• What is the combined mass of the two brothers?
• How much heavier are the two brothers than their dad?
5. Six cars are being loaded on to a car-carrying transport truck. The mass
of each car is 1,675 kilograms.
• What is the total mass of the cars that the truck can carry?
6. Two warehouse employees removed eighty-five 79 kilogram televisions
from a truck.
• What was the total mass of the televisions?
1
2
______________ = 1 D
______________ = 6 A
______________ = 5 A
______________ = 3 D
______________ = 4 A
______________ = 2 D
E
3
N
4
5
______________ = 3 A
I
H
K
C
6
C
.
T he
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
21
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Time (1-step: addition and subtraction)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
What’s the Time?
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box
with the matching answer.
1. Jeremy’s family drives to their cottage every Saturday morning. The trip from
home to the cottage takes 2 hours 50 minutes.
___________ = ALWAYS
• If they leave home at 9:15 A.M., when will they arrive at their cottage?
2. The students at Beaverbrook School have a 70-minute lunch and two recess breaks
that total 30 minutes. Together lunch and recess breaks total 100 minutes.
• How much time, in hours and minutes, is not spent in class?
___________ = CROSSER
3. On Friday evening Raj finished supper at 6:30 P.M. then went to bed at 7:30 P.M.
because he didn’t feel very well. He slept until 9:10 Saturday morning.
• How long did Raj sleep?
___________ = A
4. Beaverbrook School starts classes at 8:45 A.M. and ends at 3:30 P.M.
• How long is the school day?
___________ = HE
5. Mrs. Carter is expecting some friends for dinner. She wants everyone to eat at 6:45 P.M.
A roast that she has prepared needs 2 hours 20 minutes to cook.
• When should the roast be placed into the oven in order to be ready
___________ = DOUBLE
at 6:45 P.M.?
6. Three friends left the movies at 5:45 P.M. The movie that they saw was
2 hours 38 minutes long.
• At what time did the movie start?
___________ = WAS
Why did the sly fox cross the road
and cross back again?
.
6 h 45 min
3:07 P.M.
12:05 P.M.
13 h 40 min
4:25 P.M.
1 h 40 min
22
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Time (1-step: addition, subtraction, and multiplication)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Time’s Up
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below. To solve the
riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the matching answer.
Why aren’t mosquitoes popular?
1. On Monday morning, Mrs. Jones arrived at her office at 8:54 A.M.
The drive from her home took 36 minutes.
• At what time did Mrs. Jones leave her home?
___________ = NEEDLE
2. On that same day, Mrs. Jones left her office at 4:55 P.M. The traffic was
especially heavy and she didn’t arrive at her home until 5:50 P.M.
• How long was her commute from office to home?
___________ = SKIN
3. Jared and Justin were training partners on their school cross-country
team. Each day they ran around their schoolyard for 15 minutes.
• How many seconds did they spend training each day?
___________ = INSECTS
4. Three close friends went to the movies to see the “Return of the
Dinosaurs.” The movie was 2 hours 18 minutes long.
• How many minutes long was the movie?
___________ = YOUR
5. Ahmed, a member of the Marathoner’s Club, demonstrated in training
runs that he could run a mile in 4 minutes 20 seconds.
• If Ahmed could maintain this pace, how long would it take him to cover
a distance of three miles?
___________ = TO
6. Catherine and Melanie are members of an aerobics class. Just recently,
they completed their longest workout of 1,680 seconds.
• How many minutes long was the workout?
___________ = THESE
7. An automobile race that was reported on the 5:00 P.M. news
finished 41 minutes before the newscast.
• At what time did the race finish?
___________ = WANT
.
28 min
900 sec
4:19 P.M.
13 min
8:18 A.M.
138 min
55 min
23
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Time (1-step, 2-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Sports Time
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided next to the problem,
then locate and cross out each of the correct answers in the grid. Answers run horizontally left
to right. When you have finished, 25 boxes will remain. Write the letters in order in the
spaces provided to reveal the answer to the following riddle.
Why are people annoyed with Dracula?
1. An NBA player logged the following number of minutes of playing time over
three consecutive years: 2,863 minutes, 2,799 minutes, and 2,798 minutes.
• What was the total number of minutes played during those three years?
• How many hours of playing time would that be?
2. A marathon runner runs a total of 200 miles in six days. The average time it
takes him to complete one mile is 6 minutes.
• How many hours would it take him to finish 200 miles?
3. Competing in the Boston Marathon, a runner set a personal best time of
2 hours 30 minutes 23 seconds. He had managed to shave off 2 minutes 5 seconds
from his previous year’s time.
• What was his time in the previous year’s marathon?
4. As part of his training, an NFL football player ran 20 hours one week,
18 hours the second week, 16 the third, and 22 in the fourth week.
• How many hours of training were devoted to running during that month?
• What was the average number of hours spent running each week?
5. During the summer months, an avid skateboarder practiced for
5 hours each day, seven days a week.
• How many hours were devoted to skateboarding each week?
• How many hours went into skateboarding for the month of July?
6. A dirt bike racer completed his qualifying lap in 1 minute 43 seconds.
The first-place qualifier’s time was 1 minute 28 seconds.
• How much faster was the winning qualifier?
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
W
2
A
3
S
2
T
2
O
8
H
3
E
7
B
1
U
4
T
1
___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ /
C
9
A
4
R
7
T
6
N
8
B
8
E
8
S
9
U
9
C
0
___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ ___ /
B
1
U
5
S
5
H
5
A
9
P
5
A
8
W
3
A
5
I
9
N
7
I
9
G
8
I
4
R
6
L
0
N
5
T
0
H
0
E
9
N
9
A
1
T
9
E
0
B
1
E
5
C
7
K
7
I
2
T
0
___ / ___ ___ ___ ___ /
___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ /
___ ___ ___ ___
24
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
.
Fractions and Decimals (1-step: addition and subtraction)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Annoyed Farmer
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
1. The school library had 10 books on Ancient Egypt. Arjun borrowed
two books on Egypt. His friend Alicia borrowed three.
• What fraction of the books on Egypt did Alicia borrow?
• What fraction of the books on Egypt did Arjun borrow?
___________ = FOWL
___________ = LOTS
2. Leonard and Anthony went to an indoor car racing track with their
remote control cars. They decided to race their cars 10 times around
the track. Leonard’s car hit a bump after 4 laps and flipped over. Anthony’s
car completed 8 laps when it flipped over.
• What fraction indicates the part of the race that Leonard did
not complete?
___________ = LOUD
• What fraction indicates the part of the race that Anthony completed? ___________ = HE
3. Dominic nailed two boards together in his dad’s workshop. One board
was ¹⁄₂ inch thick and the other was ³⁄₈ inch thick.
___________ = OVERHEARD
• What was the combined thickness of the two pieces?
4. Neil planned to paint a go-cart that he had just built. He found two
one-gallon cans of paint in the garage. One can had ³⁄₈ of a gallon of paint
and the other had ²⁄₈ of a gallon. He decided to mix the paints.
• What fraction of a gallon of paint did Neil have after he mixed
the paints?
___________ = OF
5. Jessica was doing some baking. She had already combined the
dry ingredients and was ready to add ¹⁄₄ of a cup of milk
and ¹⁄₂ of a cup of water.
• What was the total amount of liquid added to the dry ingredients?
___________ = LANGUAGE
Why was the farmer annoyed when he walked by the
chickens, ducks, and turkeys?
.
⁸⁄₁₀ = ⁴⁄₅
⁷⁄₈
²⁄₁₀ = ¹⁄₅
⁵⁄₈
⁶⁄₁₀ = ³⁄₅
³⁄₁₀
³⁄₄
25
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Fractions and Decimals (1-step: addition, subtraction, and multiplication)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Fraction Tic-Tac-Toe
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided next to the
problem. Then locate and circle your answer in the tic-tac-toe grid. Three circled
answers in a straight line wins.
1. Mrs. Jones made two pizzas for her daughter’s party and cut each one into 10 pieces.
All of one pizza was eaten. Only 6 pieces of the other pizza was eaten.
• What improper fraction names how much pizza was eaten?
__________________
2. Two friends went on a nature walk with their parents. In the first hour they
hiked ⁴⁄₁₂ of the total distance and in the next hour they covered ³⁄₁₂ of the total distance.
• How much of the nature walk had they traveled in the first 2 hours?
__________________
3. Billie-Jean offered to finish painting a neighbor’s fence. Her neighbor had already
painted a portion, but ⁶⁄₈ of the fence remained unpainted. On her first day,
Billie-Jean painted ²⁄₈ of the fence.
• How much of the fence still needs to be painted?
__________________
4. Brian’s mom made 3 loaves of banana bread. She sliced two loaves into
10 equal pieces. When she returned from work, ⁸⁄₁₀ of one loaf and
⁵⁄₁₀ of the second loaf were missing.
• What portion of the original 3 loaves remains?
__________________
5. A class has 21 students. One third of the students are girls.
• How many boys are in the class?
__________________
¹⁶⁄₁₀
⁵⁄₁₂
14
⁷⁄₁₂
⁷⁄₉
⁴⁄₈ = ¹⁄₂
⁶⁄₉ = ²⁄₃
²⁄₃
1 ⁷⁄₁₀
26
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Fractions and Decimals (1-step: addition, subtraction, and multiplication)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Nothing Bugs Me
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
Why are skeletons so calm?
1. Julia is reading a superb mystery novel that is 273 pages long. She has only
read ¹⁄₃ of the novel.
• How many pages has she read?
___________ = GETS
2. Ms. Sydney has a class of 30 students. Four-sixths of the class
consists of boys.
• How many boys are in her class?
___________ = THEIR
3. Over the weekend, Nicole spent 5 ⁴⁄₅ hours working on her project while
her friend Jamie spent 3 ¹⁄₃ hours working on his project.
• How much longer did Nicole spend on her project?
___________ = BECAUSE
4. Stephanie could only practice her clarinet three times in the week before
her trip. On Monday she spent 1 ³⁄₄ hours practicing, on Wednesday
it was 2 ²⁄₃ hours, and on Friday it was 2 ⁵⁄₆ hours.
• How much time did she spend practicing?
___________ = UNDER
5. Kyle ate ¹⁄₂ of a pepperoni pizza on his birthday. Matthew ate
²⁄₃ of a cheese pizza.
• How much pizza did Kyle and Matthew eat altogether?
___________ = SKIN
6. Each student was given ¹⁄₂ of a large sticky cinnamon bun. There
were 32 students in the class.
• How many cinnamon buns were needed?
___________ = NOTHING
.
2 ⁷⁄₁₅
16
91
7 ¹⁄₄
20
⁷⁄₆ = 1 ¹⁄₆
27
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Fractions and Decimals (1-step: addition, subtraction, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Scary Monster
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below. To solve the
riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the matching answer.
How do we know if a monster’s really mean?
1. Before leaving on vacation, Mr. Hampton filled up his gas tank with 13.8 gallons
of gasoline. After driving all day, he refilled his tank by adding 12.9 gallons of gas.
• How much gasoline did he purchase that day?
___________ = IS
2. The local newspaper reported the total amount of snow that had fallen
in each of three months. December had 7.4 inches, January had 24.9 inches,
and February had 10.5 inches.
• What was the total snowfall for those three months?
___________ = AFRAID
• How much more snow fell in January than in December?
___________ = HIM
3. Three friends raced their soapbox racers over a 50-yard course.
Darryl finished first with a time of 12.9 seconds. Matthew was second
at 13.8 seconds, and Jake was third with a time of 14.5 seconds.
• How much faster was Darryl than Jake?
• How much faster was Darryl than Matthew?
• How much faster was Matthew than Jake?
___________ = HIS
___________ = ANSWER
___________ = EVEN
4. Dana and Julia rode their bikes to school. The distance was 0.9 of a mile.
After school they rode 0.4 of a mile to the corner store and then they rode 0.7
of a mile to their friend’s house to drop off some homework. Twenty minutes
later they rode 1.2 miles to their home.
• How many miles did Dana and Julia bike on that day?
___________ = BACK
5. The odometer on Nolan’s motorcycle showed 12,378.9 miles. He had just
returned from a cross-country motorcycle vacation where he had
traveled 2,796.3 miles.
• What was the reading on Nolan’s odometer before he went on vacation? ___________ = TO
6. A race car zoomed around the track at an average speed of 143.7 miles
per hour. The race was a 5-hour endurance race.
• How far did the race car travel in 5 hours?
1.6
718.5
26.7
0.7
9,582.6
0.9
17.5
3.2
___________ = ECHO
42.8
.
28
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Fractions and Decimals (2-step: addition, subtraction, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Decimal Number Search
Use the numbers in the box below to help you solve all the problems. Write your answer in
the space provided next to the problem then locate your answer in the number search.
All answers run horizontally or vertically.
1.706
5.000
1.076
1. Find the sum of the three numbers.
____________
2. Subtract the smallest number from the difference of the other two.
____________
3. Multiply the difference of the first and third numbers by the largest.
____________
4. From the total of the largest number and the smallest number, subtract the
remaining number.
____________
5. To the product of the largest and smallest number, add the other.
____________
6. Subtract the smallest number from the product of the other two numbers.
____________
7. Multiply the largest number by the sum of the other two.
____________
8. Add the difference of the first and third number to the largest number.
____________
9. Add the largest number to the product of the other two numbers.
____________
10. To the product of the first number and the largest number, add the smallest number.
7
.0
8
6
7
9
.8
2
9
.7
4
4
1
3
.9
1
2
8
8
7
.9
6
6
5
3
9
4
2
.2
1
8
4
.8
5
.6
3
4
5
9
6
.7
3
3
0
2
8
6
.8
3
5
6
5
6
9
1
4
7
.1
6
2
4
.3
7
3
7
.4
5
4
5
.8
3
9
____________
29
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Mixed Practice (1-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Timekeeper
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes
below. To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the
code box with the matching answer.
Of all the animals, which one keeps
the best time?
1. Kelly left for school at 8:05 A.M. Taking her usual route, it took her
34 minutes to get there.
• At what time did Kelly get to school?
___________ = TO
2. Karl took part in a bowling tournament. The total of his three best
scores was 630.
• What was Karl’s average score at the tournament?
___________ = A
3. An elevator can carry 18 people per trip. The elevator made five trips
in a ten-minute period with the maximum number of people.
• How many people were carried in the elevator?
___________ = IT
4. Christian was assigned a book report, which was due in three weeks.
He selected a book with 280 pages. His plan was to read 20 pages every day.
• How many days will it take Christian to read the book?
___________ = BE
5. In March, Andrew’s best time in competitive swimming was 54.37 seconds.
By June, he had decreased his time to 49.42 seconds.
• How much of an improvement had Andrew made?
___________ = HAS
6. The Kerr family was driving from Washington, D.C. to San Diego.
On the first day of their trip they drove 493 miles. They drove 429 miles
on the second day and 479 miles on the third.
• What was the total distance traveled in the first three days?
___________ = WATCHDOG
.
90
4.95
8:39
14
210
30
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
1,401
Mixed Practice (1-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Are You Puzzled?
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided next to
the problem. The number and letter next to the space tells you where to write your answer
in the cross number puzzle (5 A = 5 ACROSS). Continue solving all the problems until you have
completed the puzzle.
1. A New York City bus driver’s route is 43.5 miles long.
• How far does he drive if he follows this route 8 times per day?
___________ = 5 A
2. Peter swims at the Community Center three times a week. The pool
is 40 yards long and he swims 25 lengths each day.
• How far does he swim each day?
___________ = 2 D
3. Ahmed is an avid runner. Every morning he runs 3 miles
around the school track.
• How many yards does Ahmed run every morning?
___________ = 3 A
4. A private jet owned by a large company can fly 3,810 miles in six hours.
• How far does the jet travel in one hour?
___________ = 1 D
5. The Smith family had 502 potted plants that they sold in the month
of May. In June, they sold 621 plants.
• How many more plants did they sell in June than in May?
___________ = 2 A
6. At Mount Break, the ski lift carried 648 skiers to the top in the first hour.
The number of skiers the ski lift carried in the second hour was 682.
In the third hour, it carried 704.
• How many skiers were carried to the top of Mount Break in three hours?
___________ = 4 D
1
3
2
4
5
31
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Mixed Practice (1-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Code-Breaking Problems
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box
with the matching answer.
What happened after the monster
swallowed a bar of soap?
1. A busload of 48 tourists paid a total of $240 for a five-hour tour of the city.
• How much did each tourist pay for the tour?
___________ = MOUTH
2. An airplane flight between two major cities in the same time zone
takes 2 hours and 35 minutes. The airplane departs
from one city at 6:55 P.M.
• What will the arrival time be at its destination?
___________ = AT
3. Jessica paid for a friend’s birthday present with a $20.00 bill.
She received $4.82 change.
• How much did the birthday present cost?
___________ = HE
4. A sporting goods store sells hockey sticks for $12.00 each.
One Saturday morning, the hockey stick sales totaled $624.00.
• How many sticks did the store sell?
___________ = BUBBLED
5. A skateboarding magazine that was published monthly had
5,082 subscribers.
• How many magazines were mailed out in six months?
___________ = THE
6. Alexandra is a skier on the national team. She practices on
a 1,547-yard ski run. One day she completed the downhill run 8 times.
• How far did she ski in total on that day?
___________ = QUICKLY
.
$15.18
12,376
52
9:30
30,492
32
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
$5.00
Mixed Practice (1-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Similarities
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below.
To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box
with the matching answer.
How is a sofa like a holiday turkey?
1. Matthew and his father are on a 47-mile bicycle trip.
So far they have traveled 28 miles.
• How much farther do they have to go?
___________ = FULL
2. The fastest flamenco dancer does 16 heel taps per second.
• How many heel taps would the dancer do in one minute?
___________ = ARE
3. Two friends hiked up a mountain trail that was 2,187 yards long.
Then to get home, they hiked the trail down the other side,
which was 1,707 yards long.
• What was the total distance they hiked?
___________ = OF
4. A large office building with four sides has a total of 1,284 windows.
• What’s the average number of windows on each side?
___________ = BOTH
5. Six hundred ninety-six people attended a company picnic.
Three hundred nine were adults.
• How many children attended the picnic?
___________ = STUFFING
6. During an airplane flight from New York to Los Angeles, Beth watched
a movie that started at 1:45 P.M. and ended at 4:15 P.M.
• What was the length of the movie?
___________ = THEY
.
2h 30 min
960
321
19
3,894
387
33
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Mixed Practice (2-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Lions and Tigers
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes below. To
solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code box with the
matching answer.
What’s the difference between a tiger and a lion?
1. Sheri regularly baby-sits Mr. and Mrs. Avery’s children. She earns $2.25 per hour.
When the Averys came home last time, they gave Sheri $15 for 5 hours and
told her to keep the change.
• How much would Sheri normally earn in 5 hours?
___________ = THE
• How much was the tip that Sheri earned last time?
___________ = THE
2. Umair bought a notebook for $1.39 and two pens for $1.49 each.
• How much did he spend on these items?
___________ = MISSING
3. Stewart went to his local sporting goods store and purchased a T-shirt
for $9.98, sweat pants for $12.98, and sneakers for $42.00. He paid
for his purchases with four $20.00 bills.
• What was the total cost of Stewart’s purchases?
• How much change did he receive?
___________ = HAS
___________ = PART
4. A classroom teacher ordered 15 new textbooks all at the same price.
The cost of all 15 books was $239.85. He also ordered a globe for $29.00
and a wall map for $140.95.
• What was the total cost of the textbooks, globe, and map?
• How much would one textbook cost?
___________ = MANE
___________ = TIGER
.
$3.75
$15.99
$64.96
$11.25
$409.80
$15.04
34
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
$4.37
Mixed Practice (2-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Cleanliness is . . .
Solve the following problems and find your answer in the code boxes
below. To solve the riddle, write the word from each problem in the code
box with the matching answer.
What happened to the leopard that took
a bath four times a day?
1. Judy just turned 10 years old. Her mother is four times older than Judy.
Her father is 3 years older than her mother.
• What is Judy’s mother’s age?
• How much older is Judy’s father than Judy?
___________ = WAS
___________ = WEEK
2. A trip to the Reed family’s cottage takes 3 hours. Mr. Reed drove 70 miles in the
first hour, 68 miles in the second hour, and 54 miles in the third hour.
• What was Mr. Reed’s average speed per hour?
___________ = WITHIN
3. Ian wants to buy a baseball glove that costs $43.95. For six weeks, he has
saved $4.75 of his allowance.
• How much more money does Ian need before he can purchase
the baseball glove?
___________ = A
4. In a parking lot there were 294 cars. Forty-eight of the cars were green,
36 were brown, 62 were white, and the remainder of the cars were black.
• How many black cars were there?
___________ = HE
5. Steve received $20.00 from his uncle as a birthday present. On Monday,
he spent $2.75 for school supplies. On Wednesday, he spent $2.45 on some
food, and on Saturday, he spent $6.50 to go to the movies.
• How much money does he have left?
___________ = SPOTLESS
.
64
$15.45
33
148
40
$8.30
35
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Standardized Test Practice (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Elephant Singers
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. If your answer
is not provided, mark the letter for “none of these.” Decode the riddle by writing the
word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with the question number.
What’s the difference between the trumpeting
of male and female elephants?
1. The new school, Kingswood, opened its doors to
greet 547 students. A neighboring school,
Wittman, has 671 students. How many more students are at Wittman?
A
B
C
D
E
1,218
124
136
146
None of
these
(tuba)
(males)
(alto)
(females)
(elephants)
2. Kingswood had 295 girls while Wittman has 377.
How many girls are there altogether?
F
G
H
J
K
572
81
122
672
None of
these
1,092
223
273
253
None of
these
F
G
H
J
K
(females)
(men)
(runners)
(boys)
(women)
$977.29
$629
$977.20
$286.09
None of
these
(meals)
(sandwiches)
(trumpet)
(girls)
(soup)
6. Kingswood, with an enrollment of 547, greeted 22
new students this week. What is the total number
of students attending Kingswood now?
F
G
H
J
K
(males)
(boys)
(bass)
(baritone)
(people)
810
1,626
1,210
1,436
None of
these
5. The cafeteria at Kingswood served 349 meals at
$2.80 per meal. How much did the cafeteria make?
A
B
C
D
E
(females)
(girls)
(people)
(trumpet)
(sing)
3. The total number of boys attending the two
schools is 546. What is the average number of
boys at each school?
A
B
C
D
E
4. Kingswood and Wittman together have a total
enrollment of 1,218 students. There are 408 students that walk to school. The remainder are
bused. How many students are bused?
569
659
695
559
None of
these
(soprano)
(tenor)
(bass)
(alto)
(piano)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
36
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Question 6
Standardized Test Practice (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Hungry Leopard
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. If your answer is not
provided, mark the letter for “none of these.” Decode the riddle by writing the word
that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with the question number.
What did the hungry leopard say after eating the hunter?
1. Millwood Middle School has an enrollment of
525 students. One-fifth of the children play marbles. How many students play marbles?
A
B
C
D
E
530
105
2,625
520
None of
these
3,150
540
510
7,875
None of
these
(these)
(those)
(there)
(that)
(then)
6,551
7,449
43,449
7,441
None of
these
(sure)
(certain)
(were)
(weren’t)
(certainly)
1,678
316
378
1,677
None of
these
(hit)
(punched)
(blocked)
(defended)
(threw)
5. Eight students share their marbles and discuss their
favorite ones. Altogether they have 480 marbles. If
they all contributed the same number of marbles,
how many did each student have?
A
B
C
D
E
3. The corner store near Millwood had just received
a shipment of 25,000 marbles. Within three days,
18,449 marbles were sold. How many marbles
were still left?
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
J
K
(girl)
(boy)
(teacher)
(man)
(people)
2. If all 525 students at Millwood went to school
with 15 marbles each, how many marbles would
there be in all?
F
G
H
J
K
4. Two fifth-grade classes combined all of their
marbles. One class donated 681 marbles and the
other gave 997. What was the combined total?
50
70
488
60
None of
these
(them)
(those)
(these)
(the)
(a)
6. A Millwood School parent donated 1,450 marbles
to the fifth-grade classes at the school. If each
grade five class had 25 students, how many marbles would each student receive?
F
G
H
J
K
406
29
65
290
None of
these
(wall)
(spot)
(door)
(ceiling)
(floor)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Question 6
37
Standardized Test Practice (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Beach Bones
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. Decode the riddle by
writing the word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with
the question number.
Why does the skeleton go to the beach in the summer?
Mr. Martins and three friends went snow-mobiling
along a trail that was 473.6 miles long.
1. If they divided up the trail in equal parts for a
relay race, what would the distance traveled by
each of the four men be?
A 474.0 miles
B 1,894.4 miles
C 477.6 miles
D 118.4 miles
(we)
(they)
(she)
(he)
F
G
H
J
2. At their first rest stop the men ordered meals
with an average price of $16.77 each. What was
the total cost of their food?
F
G
H
J
$67.31
$67.08
$50.31
$16.81
(needs)
(wants)
(swims)
(dives)
382.3 miles
564.9 miles
422.3 miles
322.3 miles
$357.64
$359.84
$259.84
$359.83
(receive)
(get)
(acquire)
(achieve)
5. Together J.J. and Dana deliver 178 newspapers
each day. If each paper is worth $0.25, how much
are all the papers worth?
A
B
C
D
3. After two hours of driving, the men had covered
a distance of 91.3 miles. How many more miles
did they need to travel to complete the 473.6-mile
course?
A
B
C
D
A brother and sister, J.J. and Dana, deliver
newspapers six times a week.
4. J.J. and Dana have not spent any of their earnings.
J.J. has $179.92 in his bank account. Dana has the
same amount in hers. How much have they saved
altogether?
$42.72
$44.00
$43.72
$44.50
(the)
(one)
(two)
(a)
6. If Dana has $179.92 in her bank account, how
much more must she save from her paper route to
buy a mountain bike for $258.88?
F
G
H
J
(to)
(in)
(where)
(into)
$78.96
$438.70
$78.87
$129.44
(skeletan)
(sunburn)
(sunbathe)
(sunstroke)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
38
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Question 6
Standardized Test Practice (measurement)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Empty Boxes
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. Decode the riddle by
writing the word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with
the question number.
Why is an empty matchbox far better than
any other boxes?
1. A variety store is open from 7:00 A.M. until
9:00 P.M. six days a week. How many hours is the
store open each week?
A
B
C
D
72
84
60
96
168 sq ft
144 sq ft
166 sq ft
162 sq ft
12:37 P.M.
2:17 P.M.
1:17 P.M.
3:17 P.M.
(they)
(we)
(the)
(generally)
576 inches
144 inches
120 inches
138 inches
(container)
(box)
(room)
( jar)
5. During a thunderstorm 0.5 inches of rain fell. Later
that afternoon 0.3 more inches fell. How many inches
of rain had fallen altogether?
A
B
C
D
(because)
(since)
(therefore)
(unusual)
3. Kevin helped his elderly neighbor with some
gardening. He started at 10:40 A.M. and finished
2 hours 37 minutes later. At what time did he
finish?
A
B
C
D
F
G
H
J
(because)
(it’s)
(until)
(there’s)
2. Kristen is getting a new carpet for her bedroom.
Her room is 14 feet by 12 feet. What is the area
of her room?
F
G
H
J
4. A six-sided window is being installed in a house.
Each of the sides is 24 inches long. What is the
perimeter of the window?
0.2 inches
0.15 inches
0.4 inches
0.8 inches
(contains)
(opens)
(keeps)
(is)
6. A transcontinental jet flew 2,500 miles in five
hours. What was the average speed per hour?
F
G
H
J
500 miles per hour
2,000 miles per hour
2,505 miles per hour
12,500 miles per hour
(matchless)
(careless)
(worthless)
(useless)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
Question 6
39
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Standardized Test Practice (measurement)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Cooked or Raw?
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. Decode the riddle
by writing the word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds
with the question number.
Why did early cave dwellers eat raw meat?
1. At a track and field meet, a high jumper cleared
the bar at 6 feet 9 inches. What was the height of
his jump in inches?
A
B
C
D
59 inches
91 inches
78 inches
81 inches
(because)
(she)
(he)
(they)
2. Julie’s dog, Rover, weighed 50 ¹⁄₄ pounds in July.
Over the next two months Rover gained 1 ¹⁄₂ pounds
and ³⁄₄ pounds. How much does Rover weigh now?
F
G
H
J
52 ¹⁄₄ pounds
52 ¹⁄₂ pounds
51 ³⁄₄ pounds
51 ¹⁄₂ pounds
(couldn’t)
(didn’t)
(refused)
(hurried)
3. The MacDonald twins walk to and from school each
day, then they walk home for lunch and back again.
The distance from their home to school is ³⁄₈ mile.
What’s the total distance they walk each day going
to and coming from school?
A
B
C
D
1 ³⁄₈ miles
1 ¹⁄₈ miles
1 ¹⁄₂ miles
1 ⁵⁄₈ miles
(like)
(enjoy)
(know)
(bother)
4. A vacant lot is 95 feet long and 45 feet wide.
How many feet of fence will be needed to go
around this lot?
F
G
H
J
280 feet
140 feet
150 feet
260 feet
(how)
(when)
(where)
(why)
5. A group of bicyclists covered a distance of
24 miles each hour. How far would they travel in
3 ¹⁄₂ hours?
A
B
C
D
72 miles
84 miles
74 miles
82 miles
(they)
(to)
(we)
(cave dweller)
6. Suzanne practices her piano for 55 minutes per
day for five days. How many minutes does she
practice in five days?
F
G
H
J
250 minutes
260 minutes
265 minutes
275 minutes
(bake)
(grill)
(stew)
(cook)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
40
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Question 6
Standardized Test Practice (measurement: metrics)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Who Do You Call?
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. Decode the riddle by
writing the word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with the
question number.
What did the little girl say to her mother when the waiter
brought the flaming dessert to the table?
1. How many .25-gram scoops of sugar can fill
a 20-gram container?
A
B
C
D
25 .25-gram scoops
80 .25-gram scoops
100 .25-gram scoops
800 .25-gram scoops
(everything)
(somebody)
(something)
(nobody)
2. Two friends were competing in a long distance
race. John ran 785 meters and Louis ran one
kilometer. How much farther did Louis run?
F
G
H
J
215 meters
15 kilometers
125 meters
12 kilometers
(please)
(thanks)
(welcome)
(hello)
3. Marci bikes 1.25 kilometers to school and her best
friend, Mandi, lives .75 kilometers farther than
Marci. How far is Mandi’s house from the school?
A
B
C
D
.75 kilometers
125 meters
1 kilometer
2 kilometers
(say)
(answer)
(listen)
(call)
4. One basketball player is 2.32 meters tall and a
teammate is 2.17 meters tall. How many centimeters taller is the first basketball player?
F
G
H
J
5 centimeters
10 centimeters
15 centimeters
20 centimeters
(seven)
(eight)
(nine)
(ten)
5. A rectangular shaped desk is 80 centimeters long
and 56 centimeters wide. What is the area of the
desktop?
A 8,056 square millimeters
B 4,480 square centimeters
C
4,000 square meters
D
400 meters
(won)
(one)
(own)
(mine)
6. On a business trip, Mr. Poole drove 319.25
kilometers on Monday and 287.4 kilometers on
Tuesday. How much farther did he drive on
Monday than on Tuesday?
F
G
H
J
318.5 millimeters
.3185 meters
31.85 kilometers
3185 miles
(win)
(whine)
(one)
(won)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
Question 6
41
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Standardized Test Practice (metrics)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
A Mother’s Advice
Solve each problem. Circle the letter with the correct answer. Decode the riddle by
writing the word that is next to the answer in the code box that corresponds with the
question number.
What did the mother eagle say to her eaglets when she
saw them chasing a mouse?
1. After getting a new bicycle for his birthday, Joey
biked 1.89 kilometers to the store, 3.47 kilometers
to his grandma’s then 2.44 kilometers back to his
home. How far did he bike that day?
A
B
C
D
78 kilometers
68 kilometers
8.70 kilometers
7.80 kilometers
(plenty)
(party)
(thank you)
(please)
2. The distance from the floor to the top of the doorframe is 3 meters. Express this distance in centimeters.
F
G
H
J
300 centimeters
30 centimeters
10 centimeters
3 centimeters
(stop)
(start)
(go)
(finish)
3. A rectangular garden plot is 85 square meters.
How many more square meters are in a similar
garden plot with sides of 14 meters and 7.5
meters?
A
B
C
D
6.5 square meters
20 square meters
21.5 square meters
43 square meters
(flying)
(playing)
(nest)
(children)
4. Karim participated in a one-kilometer race that he
ran in 4 minutes 47 seconds. How many seconds
did it take him to complete the race?
F
G
H
J
224 seconds
242 seconds
287 seconds
447 seconds
(winter)
(whatever)
(with)
(why)
5. Mrs. Redding purchased a hand-woven carpet for
her living room that was 4 meters by 3 meters in
size. The price was $10.00 per square meter. How
much did she pay for the carpet?
A
B
C
D
$70.00
$120.00
$140.00
$700.00
(their)
(your)
(his)
(her)
6. A package of cookies contains 3 rows that each
measures 28 centimeters each. If you stacked all of
the cookies, how high would the stack measure?
F
G
H
J
28 centimeters
84 centimeters
280 centimeters
300 centimeters
(friend)
(food)
(feed)
(find)
.
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
Question 5
42
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Question 6
Student Reference Page
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Helpful Hints for Word Problems
WHEN YOU SOLVE WORD PROBLEMS, FOLLOW THESE STEPS:
1. Read the problem very carefully.
Understand what’s being asked.
(Reread the problem, if necessary, to get a better understanding. Some word
problems may require only one calculation to arrive at the answer; others may
require more than one step.)
2. Look for word clues.
Clues such as the following are telling you to . . .
ADD
SUBTRACT
• sum
• total
• altogether
• in all
• difference
• how many more
• how many less
3. Decide what you must do. (Add, subtract, multiply, or divide)
4. Solve the problem.
5. Look back at your answer. Does it make sense?
TO FIND THE AVERAGE:
1. Add all the numbers in the set together.
2. Divide the total by the number of items in the set.
3. Check to see that the average is between the least and greatest addends.
TO FIND THE AREA (the amount of surface covered by a shape):
1. Multiply length by width. Use the formula: A = length x width
2. Express your answer in square units.
3. Ensure that all units of measurement are the same before you multiply.
TO FIND THE PERIMETER (the distance around a shape):
1. Add the lengths of all the sides.
2. If two or more sides are equal in length, you can multiply instead of adding.
3. Use the formula: P = (2 x length) + (2 x width) for rectangles.
4. Ensure that all units of measurement are the same before adding or multiplying.
43
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Student Reference Pages
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Sample Word Problems (1-step, 2-step, multi-step)
In the word problems below you are presented with three problems of varying
difficulty. The first one is a one-step problem, the second is a two-step, and the third is
a multi-step problem. All three problems begin and end with the exact same sentences.
• Read through each of the problems and notice how the second problem becomes
slightly more difficult than the first by presenting the cost of the tattoos and the chips
separately.
• In problem one, the combined price of the tattoos and chips is given.
• Similarly the third problem becomes more challenging than the first and the second,
because the cost of each pack of tattoos is presented separately and the chips are
priced individually.
ONE-STEP PROBLEM
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
They bought tattoos and chips for $9.80.
How much did they have left?
Answer in one step: subtraction.
◆
TWO-STEP PROBLEM
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
They bought tattoos for $7.50 and chips for $2.30.
How much did they have left?
Answer in two steps: addition, then subtraction.
◆
MULTI-STEP PROBLEM
John and Adam went to the store with $20.00.
They bought 15 packs of tattoos for $0.50 each and 2 bags of chips for $1.15 each.
How much did they have left?
Answer in three steps: multiplication, addition, then subtraction.
44
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Student Reference Page
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Table of Measures
TIME
60 seconds = 1 minute
60 minute = 1 hour
24 hours = 1 day
7 days = 1 week
52 weeks = 1 year
365 days = 1 year
366 days = 1 leap year
12 months = 1 year
10 years = 1 decade
100 years = 1 century
1,000 years = 1 millennium
LENGTH
Standard
12 inches = 1 foot
3 feet = 1 yard
Metric
10 millimeters = 1 centimeter
10 centimeters = 1 decimeter
1,760 yards = 1 mile
10 decimeters = 1 meter
5,280 feet = 1 mile
100 centimeters = 1 meter
1,000 meters = 1 kilometer
WEIGHT
Standard
16 ounces = 1 pound
2,000 pounds = 1 ton
Metric
1,000 grams = 1 kilogram
1,000 kilograms = 1 metric ton
LIQUID
Standard
8 fluid ounces = 1 cup
2 cups = 1 pint
Metric
1,000 milliliters = 1 liter
1,000 liters = 1 kiloliter
4 cups = 1 quart
2 pints = 1 quart
4 quarts = 1 gallon
45
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
4. $2.03 = WANTED
5. $10.15 = FRIENDS
$15.12 = SHOW
6. $5.55 = FISH
Why did the lady at the fish market ask to
have a fish thrown at her?
She wanted to show her friends and
family the fish she caught.
ANSWER KEY
Summer Olympics, Paralympics, and
Winter Olympics (p. 6)
1. 10,744 = 5A; 3,376 = 2D
2. 1,312 = 5D
3. 8,372 = 8A; 4,173 = 6D; 8,943 = 1A
4. 15,656 = 4D; 17,457 = 7A
5. 3,111 = 3A
Sick Witch (p. 12)
1. $106.57 = FOR
Crowded Places (p. 7)
2. $0.15 = OUTSIDE
1. 35,683 = 2D; 69,087 = 4D
3. $27.00 = A
2. 4,385 = 3A; 31,298 = 2A
4. $240.00 = SHE
(1-step:
addition
and=subtraction)
3.Money
34,615
= 1A;
39,000
5A
5. $90.00 = SPELL
4.
27,456
=
6A;
3,842
=
1D
Name _______________________________________________________________
6. $36.00 = WENTDate _______________
Whose head is always in the stars?
How do we know the little witch was feelAn astronomer’s
ing much better?
She went outside for a spell.
Home Sweet Home (p. 8)
Otto’s Auto Emporium
1. 960 = A
Piggy Tales (p. 13)
2. 50 = THEY
1. $0.75 = HEM
Solve each of the problems using the information
3.
6,636 = MOUSE
Platinum 2. $29.37
1989 = OMA1994
1998
provided in the chart. Locate your answer in the
4.
35
=
PARTY
$3,998
$4,888
$5,988
Bolt
number search below. (Answers run horizontally
$10.63
=
OFT
5.
= HAVE
and144
vertically.)
3. $188.16
Golden
1988 = VES1993
1999
6. 7,532 = WARMING
$11.84
= KEH
$3,588
$4,798
$6,588
Glider
How do mice celebrate when they have
4. $19.75 = THE
moved from one house to another?
$26.70
Silver
1987 = YWA1991
1996
They have a mouse warming party.
$2,998= NTT$4,288
$5,488
Rocket
$3.30
1. If Otto has a very successful week and
5. $1,229.55 = SEL
sells all of his used cars that were built in
Doctor
Birdie (p. 9)
an even-numbered year, how much
$233.83 = OGS
1. would
3,000he= make?
TO
6. A couple, José and Maria, had saved $2,490
____________
Why
do piglets eat nonstop?
toward the purchase of a used car at Otto’s.
2. 12 = FOR
They
topurchase
make hogs
ofPlatinum
themselves.
They want
hoped to
the 1989
2. What
would
Otto’s total earnings be
3.
816 =
THE
sale of all his cars?
____________
4. from
92 =the
HURRY
5.
68
=
TWEETMENT
3. What’s the difference in price between the most
car and the least expensive
6. expensive
8,337 = VET
car that
____________
What
do Otto
youhas
doonifsale?
you have a sick
canary?
Hurry
to
the
vet
for
tweetment.
4. How much money would Otto make from
the sale of the three Platinum Bolts?
____________
Otto’s
Emporium
(p.the10)
• How Auto
much would
he earn from
sale of the three Silver Rockets?
____________
1. $19,952
• How much would be made from the
2. $42,622
sale of the Golden Gliders?
____________
3. $3,590
4.
$14,874;
$12,774;
$14,974
5. From the sum of the two most expensive
5. cars,
$9,578
$12,576, subtract the least
car.
____________
6. expensive
$1,508; $1,098;
$508
7. $13,974; $26,026
8
1
4
9
7
7
0
1
9
4
8
4
6
4
6
3
9
5
5
9
1
9
1
2
2
8
1
7
7
4
5
0
8
9
1
3
9
7
4
7
2
8
7
0
4
2
6
2
2
4
5
0
8
5
9
2
6
0
2
6
Billy-Bob’s Beefy Burgers (p. 11)
101. $6.57 = AND
F U N I N D E P E N D E N T P R A C T I C E PA G E S : W O R D P R O B L E M S
$7.63 = THE
$12.44 = SHE
2. $7.47 = HER
$7.14 = SHE
$5.39 = TO
3. $16.91 = FAMILY
$3.09 = CAUGHT
Bolt, the 1988 Golden Glider, or the 1987
Silver Rocket.
Yummy
Dessert (p. 14)
How much
more money would they
1.•$27.30
= BE
need if they were to purchase
2. $24.81
=
HAS
the Platinum Bolt?
____________
$0.76 = TO
• If José and Maria decided to buy
3. $1,225.85
CHOCOLATE
the Golden =
Glider,
how much more
money would
4. $12,000
= ITthey need? ____________
How much
money would José
5.•$358.16
= more
MOUSSE
and Maria
need if cat’s
their choice
What’s
a French
favorite dessert?
was the Silver Rocket?
____________
It has
to be chocolate mousse.
7. Three brothers received an inheritance of
$40,000 and decided
to purchase Project
cars for
Suzanne’s
Redecorating
1. themselves
12 sq yd at
= Otto’s.
GO One brother wanted to
mid-priced Platinum Bolt, the sec2. buy
10 the
sq yd
= THEIR
ond wanted the mid-priced Golden Glider,
3. and
22 the
sq yd
OF the mid-priced Silver
third=wanted
4. Rocket.
9 sq yd = THROUGH
is the
total price of the three cars
5. •8What
sq yd
= THE
theWIND
brothers wanted
6. 1that
qt =
to purchase?
____________
7. $7.00
= RIGHT
After buying the three cars, how much
8. •$43.78
=
BONES
of their inheritance would
9. $71.88
= GUSTS
be left over?
____________
(p. 15)
Why do skeletons hate cold windy days?
The gusts of wind go right through their
bones.
Hockey—Magic? (p. 16)
1. 1,400 yd = DO S C H O L A S T I C P R O F E S S I O N A L B O O K S
2. 96 inches = THEY
3. 1,098 yd = CAN
4. 26 miles = TRICKS
5. 80 feet = BOTH
6. 150 yd = HAT
What do hockey players and magicians
have in common?
They both can do hat tricks.
Measuring With Metrics (p. 17)
1. 24.75 square meters = S
2. 18.5 meters = N
3. 945 square meters = E
4. 32 centimeters = A
5. 5 centimeters = K
6. 2.67 meters = D
Why does a baker call money “bread”?
Because she kneads it!
Don’t Fence Me In (p. 18)
1. 228 sq ft = A
2. 200 feet = OF
3. 117 sq yd = HE’S
4. 24 sq ft = MUSIC
5. 126 inches = FAN
6. 1,080 sq in = SOLE
Why did the basketball player hold his
sneaker up to his ear?
He’s a fan of sole music.
Bass Tournament (p. 19)
1. 4 oz = KEEP
2. 1 lb = SHUT
1 lb 13 oz = WHAT
3. 21 lb = YOU
4. 19 lb 15 oz = DON’T
1 lb 1 oz = THAT’S
5. 20 lb 3 oz = MOUTH
23 lb 2 oz = WHEN
63 lb 4 oz = YOUR
1 lb 15 oz = HAPPENS
What did the largemouth bass say to the
smallmouth bass when it got hooked?
That’s what happens when you don’t keep
your mouth shut.
Chain Link or Wood? (p. 20)
1. 9 ¹⁄₈ lb = TO
2. 6 ³⁄₄ lb = ONE
3. 168 oz = A
4. 4 ¹⁄₂ lb = TIME
5. 12 ¹⁄₄ lb = NEW
6. 4 ounces = BUILD
What time is it when an elephant leans
against your fence?
Time to build a new one.
Weighing In (p. 21)
1. 31.72 kilograms
2. 11.94 kilograms
3. 1080 kilograms
4. 140.85 kilograms
5. 30.38 kilograms
6. 10,050 kilograms
7. 6715 kilograms
Of all the barnyard animals, which one is
the most cowardly?
The chicken.
What’s the Time? (p. 22)
1. 12:05 P.M. = ALWAYS
2. 1 h 40 min = CROSSER
3. 13 h 40 min = A
4. 6 h 45 min = HE
5. 4:25 P.M. = DOUBLE
6. 3:07 P.M. = WAS
Why did the sly fox cross the road and
cross back again?
He was always a double crosser.
46
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Time (1-step, 2-step: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Nothing Bugs Me (p. 27)
Time’s Up (p. 23)
1. 91 = GETS
1. 8:18 A.M. = NEEDLE
2. 20 = THEIR
2. 55 min = SKIN
3. 2 ⁷⁄₁₅ hours = BECAUSE
3. 900 sec = INSECTS
Solve each of the problems below. Write your answer in the space provided next to the problem,
4. 7 ¹⁄₄ hours = UNDER
4. locate
138andmin
=each
YOUR
then
cross out
of the correct answers in the grid. Answers run horizontally left
to right. When you have finished, 25 boxes will remain. Write the letters in order in the
5. ⁷⁄₆ or 1¹⁄₆ = SKIN
5. 13 min = TO
spaces provided to reveal the answer to the following riddle.
6. 16 = NOTHING
6. 28 min = THESE
Why are people annoyed with Dracula?
Why are skeletons so calm?
7. 4:19 P.M. = WANT
1. An NBA player logged the following number of minutes of playing time over
Because nothing gets under their skin.
Why
are mosquitoes
not2,799
popular?
three consecutive
years: 2,863 minutes,
minutes, and 2,798 minutes.
• What was
the total number
of minutes
played during
those three
years?
______________
These
insects
want
to needle
your
skin.
• How many hours of playing time would that be?
______________
Scary
Monster (p. 28)
2. A marathon runner runs a total of 200 miles in six days. The average time it
takes him toTime
complete one
is 6 minutes.
1. 26.7 gal = IS
Sports
(p.mile24)
many hours would it take him to finish 200 miles?
______________
2. 42.8
in = AFRAID
1.• How
8,460
min
3. Competing in the Boston Marathon, a runner set a personal best time of
2 hours
minutes 23 seconds. He had managed to shave off 2 minutes 5 seconds
17.5 in HIM
14130hours
from his previous year’s time.
3. 1.6
sec
= HIS
2.• What
20 hours
Fractions
and Decimals (2-step: addition, subtraction, and division)
was his time in the previous year’s marathon?
______________
4.3.
As2part
his min
training,28
an NFL
football player ran 20Name
hours _______________________________________________________________
one week,
0.9 sec = ANSWER
h of32
sec
Date _______________
18 hours the second week, 16 the third, and 22 in the fourth week.
0.7
sec = EVEN
4.• How
76 many
hours
hours of training were devoted to running during that month?
______________
• What
was the average number of hours spent running each week?
______________
4. 3.2
mi = BACK
19 hours
5. During the summer months, an avid skateboarder practiced for
5. 9,582.6 mi = TO
5.5 hours
35 hours
each day, seven days a week.
6. 718.5
mi = ECHO
155many
hours
• How
hours were devoted to skateboarding each week?
______________
Use the
to help
you solve all the problems. Write your answer in
ofnumbers
July? in the box below
______________
How
do we know a monster’s really
6.• How
15 many
sechours went into skateboarding for the month
the space provided next to the problem then locate your answer in the number search.
6. A dirt bike racer completed his qualifying lap in 1 minute 43 seconds.
All answers run horizontally or vertically.
mean?
Why
are people
annoyed
Dracula?
The first-place
qualifier’s time
was 1 minutewith
28 seconds.
• How
muchbe
faster
was theawinning
qualifier?
His______________
echo is even afraid to answer him
He
can
such
pain
in the neck.
back.
1.706
5.000
1.076
W
A
S
T
O
H
E
B
U
T
Sports Time
Decimal Number Search
2
3
2
2
8
3
7
1
4
1
___ ___ / ___ ___ ___ /
S
U
C
___ /numbers.
___ ___ ___ ___ /
9 1. Find
9 the sum
0 of ___
the three
Decimal Number Search (p. 29)
1. 7.782
2. 2.218
N
I
G
I
R
L
N
3. 3.15
7
9
8
4
6
0
5
4. 4.37
N
A
T
E
B
E
C
9
1
9
0
1
5
7
5. 7.086
6. Subtract the smallest number from the product of the other two numbers.
24
6. 7.454
7. Multiply the largest number by the sum of the other two.
Fractions and Decimals
(1-step: addition,
subtraction, and
multiplication)
7. 13.91
Annoyed
Farmer
(p.
25)
8. Add the difference of the first and third number to the largest number.
Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
8. 5.63
1. ³⁄₁₀ = FOWL
9. Add the largest number to the product of the other two numbers.
9. 6.835656
²⁄₁₀ = ¹⁄₅ = LOTS
10. To the product of the first number and the largest number, add the smallest number.
10. 9.606
2. ⁶⁄₁₀ = ³⁄₅ = LOUD
⁸⁄₁₀ = ⁴⁄₅ = HE
7 .0 8
6
7
9 .8
2
9
Solve each of the problems
below.
answer in the space provided next to the
3.
⁷⁄₈
inWrite=yourOVERHEARD
problem. Then locate and circle your answer in the tic-tac-toe grid. Three circled
.7
4
4
1
3
.9
1
2
8
answers in a straight line
4.wins.
⁵⁄₈ gal OF
1. Mrs. Jones made
two³⁄₄
pizzas
her daughter’s party and cut each one into 10 pieces.
8
7
.9 6
6 5
3
9
4
5.
= forLANGUAGE
All of one pizza was eaten. Only 6 pieces of the other pizza was eaten.
Why
the
farmer
annoyed when
he
• What improper
fractionwas
names how
much
pizza was eaten?
__________________
2 .2
1
8
4 .8
5 .6
3
walked
bywith
the
and
2. Two friends went
on a nature walk
theirchickens,
parents. In the first ducks,
hour they
4
5
9
6
.7
3
3
0
2
hiked ⁴⁄₁₂ of the total distance and in the next hour they covered ³⁄₁₂ of the total distance.
turkeys?
• How much of the nature walk had they traveled in the first 2 hours?
__________________
8
6 .8
3
5
6
5
6
9
He overheard lots of fowl language.
3. Billie-Jean offered to finish painting a neighbor’s fence. Her neighbor had already
C
9
A
4
R
7
T
6
N
8
B
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E
8
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W 2. Subtract
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3. Multiply the difference
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___ ___
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the largest number and the smallest number, subtract the
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remaining number.
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7
2
0
F U N I N D E P E N D E N T P R A C T I C E PA G E S : W O R D P R O B L E M S
SCHOLASTIC PROFESSIONAL BOOKS
Fraction Tic-Tac-Toe
painted a portion, but 6/8 of the fence remained unpainted. On her first day,
Billie-Jean painted 2/8 of the fence.
• How much of the fence still needs to be painted?
Fraction Tic-Tac-Toe (p. 26) __________________
1. 3¹⁶⁄₁₀
1 ³⁄₅bread. She sliced two loaves into
loaves =
of banana
4. Brian’s mom made
10 equal pieces. When she returned from work, ⁸⁄₁₀ of one loaf and
2.loaf712
⁵⁄₁₀ of the second
were missing.
• What portion of the original 3 loaves remains?
__________________
3. ⁴⁄₈ = ¹⁄₂
5. A class has 21 students. One third of the students are girls.
4.
1
⁷⁄₁₀
• How many boys are in the class?
__________________
5. 14
⁵⁄₁₂
14
⁷⁄₁₂
⁷⁄₉
⁴⁄₈ = ¹⁄₂
⁶⁄₉ = ²⁄₃
²⁄₃
1 ⁷⁄₁₀
26
F U N I N D E P E N D E N T P R A C T I C E PA G E S : W O R D P R O B L E M S
4
7
.1
6
2
4
.3
7
7
.4
5
4
5
.8
3
9
____________
____________
____________
____________
____________
____________
____________
____________
29
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¹⁶⁄₁₀
1
3
____________
____________
FUN INDEPENDENT PRACTICE PAGES: WORD PROBLEMS
Timekeeper (p. 30)
1. 8:39 A.M. = TO
2. 210 = A
3. 90 = IT
4. 14 = BE
5. 4.95 sec = HAS
6. 1,401 mi WATCHDOG
Of all the animals, which one keeps the
best time?
It has to be a watchdog.
Are You Puzzled? (p. 31)
1. 348 mi = 5A
2. 1,000 yd = 2D
3. 5,280 yd = 3A
4. 635 mi = 1D
5. 119 = 2A
6. 2,034 = 4D
SCHOLASTIC PROFESSIONAL BOOKS
Code-Breaking Problems (p. 32)
1. $5.00 = MOUTH
2. 9:30 P.M. = AT
3. $15.18 = HE
4. 52 = BUBBLED
5. 30,492 = THE
6. 12,376 yd = QUICKLY
What happened after the monster
swallowed a bar of soap?
He quickly bubbled at the mouth.
Similarities (p. 33)
1. 19 mi = FULL
2. 960 = ARE
3. 3,894 yd = OF
4. 321 = BOTH
5. 387 = STUFFING
6. 2 h 30 min = THEY
How is a sofa like a holiday turkey?
They are both full of stuffing.
Lions and Tigers (p. 34)
1. $11.25 = THE
$3.75 = THE
2. $4.37 = MISSING
3. $64.96 = HAS
$15.04 = PART
4. $409.80 = MANE
$15.99 = TIGER
What’s the difference between a tiger and
a lion?
The tiger has the mane part missing.
Cleanliness Is… (p. 35)
1. 40 = WAS
33 = WEEK
2. 64 mph = WITHIN
3. $15.45 = A
4. 148 = HE
5. $8.30 = SPOTLESS
What happened to the leopard that took a
bath four times a day?
Within a week he was spotless.
Elephant Singers (p. 36)
1. B (males)
2. J (trumpet)
3. C (bass)
4. F (females)
5. C (trumpet)
6. K (soprano)
What’s the difference between the trumpeting of male and female elephants?
Males trumpet bass, females trumpet
soprano.
Hungry Leopard (p. 37)
1. B (boy)
2. J (that)
3. A (sure)
4. F (hit)
5. D (the)
6. G (spot)
What did the hungry leopard say after
eating the hunter?
Boy that sure hit the spot.
47
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Beach Bones (p. 38)
1. D (he)
2. G (wants)
3. A (to)
4. G (get)
5. D (a)
6. F (skeletan)
Why does the skeleton go to the beach in
the Summer?
He wants to get a skeletan.
Empty Boxes (p. 39)
1. B (it’s)
2. F (because)
3. C (the)
4. G (box)
5. D (is)
6. F (matchless)
Why is an empty matchbox far better
than any other boxes?
It’s because the box is matchless.
Cooked or Raw? (p. 40)
1. D (he)
2. G (didn’t)
3. C (know)
4. F (how)
5. B (to)
6. J (cook)
Why did early cave dwellers eat raw
meat?
They didn’t know how to cook.
Who Do You Call? (p. 41)
1. B (somebody)
2. F (please)
3. D (call)
4. H (nine)
5. B (one)
6. H (one)
What did the little girl say to her mother
when the waiter brought the flaming
dessert to the table?
Somebody please call nine one one.
A Mother’s Advice (p. 42)
1. D (please)
2. F (stop)
3. B (playing)
4. H (with)
5. B (your)
6. G (food)
What did the mother eagle say to her
eaglets when she saw them chasing a
mouse?
Please stop playing with your food.
48
Fun Independent Practice Pages: Word Problems © Bob Olenych, Scholastic Teaching Resources